On Saturday, the Los Angeles Lakers announced that Tarik Black had been waived, which closed the loop on Black's time with the Lakers after the center had originally been claimed by the team via waivers in December of 2014.
Though likely not a welcomed move considering the player's positive reputation inside the locker room and beyond, this move hardly came as a shock. By cutting Black when they did, the Lakers avoided paying the 25-year-old $6.7 million in salary for the 2017-18 season.
Black may be a defensive specialist and an energetic player that fits the Lakers' style moving into the future, but 5.7 points and 5.1 rebounds in 16.3 minutes per game during the 2016-17 season did not expect to bring Black back to the Lakers at that price tag.
During his time in LA, the Memphis native personified professionalism by not publicly spatting with his coach despite failing to see the court with any regularity during Byron Scott's two-year tenure. At times, Black would simply smile and go so far as to ask, "What am I supposed to say?" rather than share frustrations over his lack of playing time in a head-scratching situation.
The young center only averaged 12.7 minutes in 39 appearances with zero starts for the 2015-16 LA Lakers, a team that struggled to play defense and finished with the worst record in the history of the franchise. Through all the losing, Black remained a mature professional when interacting with reporters and seemingly remained a positive teammate inside the Lakers' locker room.
In addition, he became a media favorite because his interviews often displayed depth, interest and understanding of non-basketball subjects to a level rarely found inside NBA locker rooms. Finding college graduates in the NBA is quickly becoming rare. Meanwhile, Black even went back to the University of Kansas after becoming a professional to earn his Master's Degree.
Perhaps, the best example of Black's professionalism and good nature arrived when he did. In those early days of donning a purple and gold jersey, Black finished off every interview with a single line: "Thank you for the opportunity."
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Thank you for the opportunity, @TarikBlack25— Shahan Ahmed (@shahanLA) July 1, 2017
On hearing the news of the Lakers waiving Black, those who interacted with Black regularly could not help but wish him the best of luck and apply new direction to that line: "Thank you for the opportunity."
